The Proclamation of Redemption

Acts 13:13-41

At Antioch in Pisidia

13 Now when Paul and his party set sail from Paphos, they came to Perga in Pamphylia; and John, departing from them, returned to Jerusalem. 14 But when they departed from Perga, they came to Antioch in Pisidia, and went into the synagogue on the Sabbath day and sat down. 15 And after the reading of the Law and the Prophets, the rulers of the synagogue sent to them, saying, "Men and brethren, if you have any word of exhortation for the people, say on."

16 Then Paul stood up, and motioning with his hand said, "Men of Israel, and you who fear God, listen: 17 The God of this people Israel chose our fathers, and exalted the people when they dwelt as strangers in the land of Egypt, and with an uplifted arm He brought them out of it. 18 Now for a time of about forty years He put up with their ways in the wilderness. 19 And when He had destroyed seven nations in the land of Canaan, He distributed their land to them by allotment.

20 "After that He gave them judges for about four hundred and fifty years, until Samuel the prophet. 21 And afterward they asked for a king; so God gave them Saul the son of Kish, a man of the tribe of Benjamin, for forty years. 22 And when He had removed him, He raised up for them David as king, to whom also He gave testimony and said, I have found David the son of Jesse, a man after My own heart, who will do all My will.' 23 From this man's seed, according to the promise, God raised up for Israel a Savior—Jesus— 24 after John had first preached, before His coming, the baptism of repentance to all the people of Israel. 25 And as John was finishing his course, he said, 'Who do you think I am? I am not He. But behold, there comes One after me, the sandals of whose feet I am not worthy to loose.'

26 "Men and brethren, sons of the family of Abraham, and those among you who fear God, to you the word of this salvation has been sent. 27 For those who dwell in Jerusalem, and their rulers, because they did not know Him, nor even the voices of the Prophets which are read every Sabbath, have fulfilled them in condemning Him. 28 And though they found no cause for death in Him, they asked Pilate that He should be put to death. 29 Now when they had fulfilled all that was written concerning Him, they took Him down from the tree and laid Him in a tomb. 30 But God raised Him from the dead. 31 He was seen for many days by those who came up with Him from Galilee to Jerusalem, who are His witnesses to the people. 32 And we declare to you glad tidings—that promise which was made to the fathers. 33 God has fulfilled this for us their children, in that He has raised up Jesus. As it is also written in the second Psalm:

'You are My Son,
Today I have begotten You.'

34 And that He raised Him from the dead, no more to return to corruption, He has spoken thus:
I will give you the sure mercies of David.'

35 Therefore He also says in another Psalm:
You will not allow Your Holy One to see corruption.'

36 "For David, after he had served his own generation by the will of God, fell asleep, was buried with his fathers, and saw corruption; 37 but He whom God raised up saw no corruption. 38 Therefore let it be known to you, brethren, that through this Man is preached to you the forgiveness of sins; 39 and by Him everyone who believes is justified from all things from which you could not be justified by the law of Moses. 40 Beware therefore, lest what has been spoken in the prophets come upon you:

41 'Behold, you despisers,
Marvel and perish!
For I work a work in your days,
A work which you will by no means believe,
Though one were to declare it to you.'"

The gospel was the purchase of redemption as recorded in the gospels of the apostles.  Now  in Acts we find the proclamation of God’s redemption of His people at last!  In Genesis chapters 1-11 we saw the need of redemption, in Genesis chapter 12 to Malachi ending the Old Testament we see the channel of redemption through the chosen nation of Israel to bring redeeming grace to be given to all nations as promised to Abraham, and the gospel accounts tell us of the purchase of redemption by Jesus the Messiah sacrificing Himself while simultaneously acting as our High Priest to minister the forgiveness of salvation with an eternal sacrifice never needing to be repeated as the yearly sacrifices were before His arrival and once for all atoning death.  Later in the epistles we will read of the explanation of redemption as the Spirit of God moves some apostles to flesh out all of these things further for our understanding and then in Revelation we will find a veiled unveiling of the consummation of redemption to be realized for all in Christ at the end of time marked by the final judgment and our eternal presence before the Lord and Lamb in the power and presence of the Spi of God forevermore.  What a hope we realize as this all unfolds before us!  It begins to be made known to the end of the world (Acts 1:8) as the commission is put to feet (Matthew 28:19-20, Romans 10:14-15) and Paul spoke in this passage where he spoke to the Jewish rulers of the synagogue in Antioch on the sabbath day.  He was asked for the reason of the hope within him (1 Peter 3:15) and responded gladly with an overview of the channel of redemption in the call out of bondage and provision of the promised land given by covenant to them.  He recounted the following time nearly equal to that time in bondage in the time of the judges given to guide Israel until they demanded a king who misled them.  Then the LORD gave them David the son of Jesse, “a man after My own heart, who will do all My will” to rule them and who was a branch of righteousness through whose lineage the Messiah Jesus Christ, their Savior, would come to them as the fulfillment of the promise to them.  This was precursored by the coming of John who first preached the baptism of repentance before His coming among them as Immanuel a a way to make straight the ways of their hearts to receive Him through faith.  

Paul summarized it all by telling them plainly as sons of Abraham of the promise that this Jesus came to fulfill these scriptures which they turned a deaf ear to so they would fear God and understand they had as a people put Him to death on the cross as if cursed when He was taking their curse and consequences of sin upon Himself as that eternal sacrifice to cover their sins, including that one as it was also written.  Then God raised Him from the dead!  This resurrected Savior was seen by many and was an established fact, not a fictitious story concocted by the followers of this Rabbi who was also the Son of God and not merely a man.  Paul reminded them of Psalm 2:7 showing Jesus was God’s Son and the eternal covenant through Him of Isaiah 55:3 as he explained this redemption to them.  He further demonstrated the resurrection and eternal life ot the Son of Man and God from Psalm 16:10 with the hope of eternal life and joy in His presence as a result of salvation from God’s wrath on their sin in Psalm 16:11 as unfulfilled before in David who also died and remained dead but with this hope to anticipate to come.  All they had to do in light of God’s plan of redemption was to believe Him and His work for forgiveness of sins and justification by faith in His righteousness (Isaiah 53:11) apart from their own perceptions of attaining standing of the Law by attempting to keep the rules to earn it which is impossible.  He left whom with the warning of disbelief and rejection of these things as it was written in Habakkuk 1:5; they were urged not to make that mistake of disbelieving the gospel which was their only hope and a certain way to make peace with God in reconciliation by His own hand.  This same challenge and hope through Israel as the channel of redemption is presented to all people in ever nation in the Lord Jesus the Christ and in no other.  This passage explains The Proclamation of Redemption as it was written long before Jesus came to earth as a man to deliver us from sin’s consequences.  May all who read these things proclaiming redemption understand and accept them as true and eternally profitable.